Public Events

The Karl-Scheel-Award represents the most important prize of the Physical Society to Berlin (PGzB) and is awarded for an outstanding scientific achievement which was carried out in the years immediately following the doctorate and which was realized mainly at a research facility in Berlin or Brandenburg.
PIK-scientist and laureate Ricarda Winkelmann will present her lecture "Antarctic Unplugged: Ice Dynamics, Critical Thresholds and Sea Level Rise" at this year's award ceremony on June 23rd. Admission to the event is free.

On 06/22/2017, the parliamentary group SPD invites the public to the discussion event "Climate Protection as a Motor for National Economy: Promote a Sustainable Economic Growth and Limit the Costs of Climate Change". In the run-up to the G20 summit in Hamburg, synergies between climate protection measures and economic growth as well as the corresponding long-term setting of the course of the parliamentary group SPD will be presented and discussed. PIK-scientist Anders Levermann and PIK-chief economist Ottmar Edenhofer will accompany the event with lectures from their research areas. Admission is free, registration is required.

The Falkenberg environmental conservation association "Elsteraue" and the town administration of Falkenberg/Elster invite the public to the discussion event "Global Climate Change - Caused by Humans - Explain, Comprehend, Act!". The aim of the event is to raise public awareness of the challenges of climate change in order to develop preventive measures for climate stabilization and adaptation. As guest speaker, Prof. Dr. Manfred Stock (PIK) will report on the topic "How do we deal with climate change?". Admission is free.

This year, the Leibniz-Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) celebrates it's 25th anniversary. On this occasion, a scientific symposium with the title "Agricultural Landscape Research in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals" will be hold. The SDGs are a political framework by the United Nations supposed to guide to a sustainable development on economic, social and ecologic levels. Wolfgang Lucht is co-chair of the PIK research domain "Earth System Analysis", Professor for Sustainability Science at the Humboldt University of Berlin, and member of the German Advisory Council on the Environment. At the symposium, he will speak about Agricultural Landscape Research in the context of climate change. Event is in German language, registration necessary.

Lecture with following discussion. For more than three decades, John Schellnhuber explores humanity's problem of climate change. Account of the state of research, life story, eco-manifest: all this is his new major book on the climate crisis. In the Castle of Sacrow, the PIK-director presents his work and gives an insight into the state of research on climate change. Event in German language, moderated by PIK-scientist Manfred Stock. Tickets available online.

Religion and climate change are having touch points - this has already been proven by the Pope's environment encyclical "Laudato Si", that has been presented to the world public by PIK-director John Schellnhuber in 2015. Now, also the Protestant Community provides a platform for the topic: "The reformatory advent 500 years ago was an outbreak from old habits. Reformation is change. How do we set forth today, bold, creative and powerful, to face challenges as the climate crisis, economic crisis, financial crisis, peace crisis?", asks the German Evangelical Church Assembly on the occasion of the 500th jubilee of the Reformation. The panel series "Impacts of Climate Change" is dedicated to the encounter with the climate crisis. PIK's chief economist Ottmar Edenhofer, as well as Hermann Lotze-Campen, research domain co-chair at PIK, along with PIK-scientists Elmar Kriegler and Carl-Friedrich Schleussner will act on the stage. Additionally, the exhibition "Educational Climate Journey" is co-designed by PIK.

Technical University of Berlin, Main Buolding, Lecture Hall H 104, from
May 18, 2017 06:15 PM to
May 18, 2017 07:45 PM

Lecture with following reception. The Max-von-Laue-colloquium of the Physikalische Gesellschaft zu Berlin continues a traditional series of colloquia, in which current scientific results are discussed since 1843. In the summer semester 2017, John Schellnhuber speaks at the Technical University of Berlin. The PIK-director is going to reconstruct the most important aspects of historic climate dynamics, and will identify the most critical trends likely to be triggered by thoughtless human interventions. Event in German language, presented by PIK-scientist Jürgen Kurths. Entrance is free.

Federal Ministry of Education and Research, Berlin, from
May 18, 2017 10:00 AM to
May 18, 2017 12:00 PM

The new exhibition in the Federal Ministry of Education and Research provides exciting insights into the exploration of the deep-sea: from oases of life and resources from the ocean floor to the latest research equipment. Also changes in the dynamics of the oceans through human interventions, like climate change or plastic waste, are a major subject. At the exhibition launch, PIK-scientist Stefan Rahmstorf discusses with the ocean experts Jochem Marotzke and Monika Rhein about possible impacts of human behaviour, like a weakening of the gulf-stream. Event in German language, the entrance is free.

Humboldtbau, Technical University Ilmenau, from
May 17, 2017 09:00 AM to
May 17, 2017 11:00 AM

The motto of the Technical University Ilmenau is "The Spirit of Science". On the occasion of this year's Dies academicus, several festive events are going to take place. The testimonial lecture at the opening ceremony will be hold by PIK-scientist Wolfgang Lucht. He is co-chair of the PIK research domain "Earth System Analysis", Professor for Sustainability Science at the Humboldt University of Berlin, and member of the German Advisory Council on the Environment. He is going to speak about nothing less than Earth's Future - and how the knowledge about the Planetary Boundaries can lead to a Social Transformation. Entrance is free, no registration necessary.

The growing inequality between countries and incomes might be the greatest challenge for climate policy - one of the central theses of the new major book on climate policy, written by Ottmar Edenhofer and Michael Jakob. Edenhofer is chief economist of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and director of the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC). Michael Jakob is leading the MCC-Taskforce "Public Economics". The book delivers a brief overview of climate policy as well as the deriving conflicts and opportunities for their solution. It presents the current state of research in a comprehensible language, without simplifying the complex matter too much. The Foundation Mercator invites to the public book presentation within the "Salon Mercator" series. Event in German language. The entrance is free, registration necessary.

Under this year's title "Electric Car - how to achieve the million?", experts from economy, science and politics get together to discuss once more about the mobility of the future. Anders Levermann is co-chair of the research domain "Sustainable Solutions" at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and gives impulses from the perspective of science in his keynote lecture. Tickets available online.

At this year's re:publica conference, PIK-scientist Ricarda Winkelmann invites in a multimedia lecture to a journey far south. Update: recording available online. --- "Climate scientists see complicated code and algorithms on their screens – but through the huge amounts of data they can also see the past and future evolution of our oceans, forests or the polar ice caps. With one of the best computer models of Antarctica you can explore the ice-covered continent, but why should you care? Because burning all of the world’s available fossil-fuel resources would result in the complete melting of the Antarctic Ice Sheet, whose ice masses store water equivalent to more than 50 meters of sea-level rise."

In 2016, a team of PIK-scientists provided comprehensive food loss projections for countries around the world - while also calculating the associated emissions. About a tenth of overall global greenhouse-gas emissions from agriculture could be traced back to food waste by mid-century. At the international Save Food Congress, experts from business, science, political spheres and civil society get together to shed some light on the various facets of the food waste problem. PIK-scientist Prajal Pradhan contributed to last year's study, and gives insight into the impacts of food waste on the global climate. Update: PDF online.

The Planetary Boundaries Concept was designed to define a "safe operating space for humanity" on Planet Earth. It was introduced in 2009 by an international team of scientists surrounding Johan Rockström from the Stockholm Resilience Center, PIK-director John Schellnhuber and other environmental experts. Hosted by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, the Umweltbundesamt and the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and others organize an international conference on the practical implications for society, economy and politics - to make the Planetary Boundaries Concept work. Along with Johan Rockström, PIK-scientist Wolfgang Lucht and other renowned experts will be among the speakers. Registration is necessary.

For over 30 years, the event series "Knowledge and Future" by the Oldenburgische Landesbank deals with perspectives in a changing world. For three decades, John Schellnhuber explores humanity's problem of climate change. Based on "Self-combustion", his major book on the climate crisis, he speaks about the fatal triangular relationship between climate, humanity and carbon. Registration necessary, event in German language.

Also in Germany, the effects of Climate Change can already be felt. Hereby, its impacts are variing over space. The 3rd Climate Day Castrop-Rauxel deals with the questions, which specific changes are to be expected in the region - and which adaptation measures are necessary. PIK-scientist Carsten Walther explains in a lecture, which dangers Climate Change brings for human health. Event in German language, registration is necessary.

For over 300 years, the Leopoldina is bringing together outstanding scientists from all over the world. This year's symposium of the class Mathematics, Natural and Technical Sciences deals with the topics Climate and Energy. PIK-director John Schellnhuber and PIK's chief economist Ottmar Edenhofer will hold two of the keynote lectures about the "Non-linearity of the climate problem" and the "Atmosphere as common property". Event in German language, registration is necessary.

Concerning climate protection and the adaptation to Climate Change, municipal actors play an important role. Within the series "Future of the Cities" of the Deutsches Institut für Urbanistik, PIK-scientist Fritz Reusswig and other experts are going to discuss about the topic. How can climate protection be implemented by as many actors as possible? Event in German language, registration is necessary.

With its 10th Conference on Climate Protection, the German Town and Municipality Confederation is taking account of the fact that cities and municipalities in Germany have been significant key players in climate protection for many years. Outstanding municipal practical examples for the achievement of climate protection goals will be presented and the active discussion among representatives from municipalities, politics, science and economy will take place. PIK-Director Hans Joachim Schellnhuber will highlight the connections between climate change, morality and climate protection as a global citizen movement. Participation is liable to costs and registration is required. The event will be held in German language.

How will we live in the future? The exhibiton "Things to Come. Science · Fiction · Film" in the Museum for Film and Television of the Deutsche Kinemathek examines the interaction between Science Fiction and our hopes and fears about the future. Without doubt, the impacts of climate change will shape our lives in the coming decades and beyond. In his lecture "Climate Change: What is Science, what is Fiction?", PIK-scientist Stefan Rahmstorf provides clarity about the state of climate science and cleans up with climate myths. Free admission.